No. 74. Congee at King Lobster Palace

Rice porridge is one of those breakfast foods Asian moms make when you're feeling under the weather. My mom did, anyway -- YAMMMV (your Asian mom mileage may vary). The best local version is served in Orange's King Lobster Palace.

Congee is what the Cantonese version is called, and you'll find it for breakfast in dim sum restaurants, where it may also be accompanied with fried savory crullers for contrasting texture. When the dim sum cart-lady walks past with the covered-up steam cart walks past your table, you may or may not be asked if you want congee, possibly because non-Asian Americans typically don't have a familial attachment to rice gruel.

Like grits, rice porridge doesn't sound appealing at all to the uninitiated, but at King Lobster Palace, be sure you watch for the boxy steam cart that's completely covered up -- chase the congee lady down if you must.

Properly-cooked congee tastes plain, so as not to upset the stomach, but picks up flavor from rich ingredients that cook within, like bits of spice-preserved 1000 year egg. The version at KLP has lots of good-sized pieces that flavor the bland soup, along with a strong dose of white pepper ground into a fine dust that makes it more potent. Salt? Why, yes, there is a healthy dose, some bits of chicken meat for protein, green onion, and interestingly, freshly-fried corn flakes to take the place of the fried cruller.

It's just the thing when you're feeling under the weather and not wanting to leave the bed on a Saturday morning. Have a bowl of congee, wash down some roast pork buns with jasmine tea, and you'll be feeling better in no time.